ASP.NET and C# - Get selected item in static DropDownList

Question

I'm new to ASP.NET and I'm having problem with getting selected item in static DropDownList. This is the structure of my list:

                   <asp:DropDownList ID="txtGender" runat="server">
                            <asp:ListItem>Male</asp:ListItem>

                            <asp:ListItem>Female</asp:ListItem>

                            <asp:ListItem>Other</asp:ListItem>

                            <asp:ListItem>Rather not say</asp:ListItem>
                    </asp:DropDownList>

Then in the code where I want to get the selected item, I use txtGender.SelectedItem and always get the first item as input. I have another DropDownList where I have to fetch the items from database, then I use IsPostBack before calling DataBind() and it works fine. So I'm wondering how should I use IsPostBack in static DropDownList as above? Please help.

*EDITED

Below is the method that I use the txtGender:

protected void btnSave_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    int uID= int.Parse(Session["uID"].ToString());
    PhotoDataSetTableAdapters.MembersTableAdapter memAdap = new PhotoDataSetTableAdapters.MembersTableAdapter();
    PhotoDataSet.MembersDataTable memTable = memAdap.GetMemberByID(uID);

    DataRow[] dr = memTable.Select("userID = " + uID);
    string Fname = memTable.AsEnumerable().Single().Field<String>("avatar");
    if(PhotoUploader.HasFile)
    {
       Fname = Path.GetFileName(PhotoUploader.FileName);
       PhotoUploader.SaveAs(Server.MapPath("~/avatar/") + Fname);
    }

    string newPass = memTable.AsEnumerable().Single().Field<String>("password");
    if (txtPass.Text != "")
    {
        newPass = txtPass.Text;
    }

    string tmp = txtBday.Text;
    DateTime bday = DateTime.ParseExact(tmp, "dd/MM/yyyy", null);

    memAdap.UpdateMemberProfile(newPass, txtEmail.Text, txtRealname.Text, txtLocation.Text, txtGender.SelectedItem.Text, txtBio.Text, bday, Fname, uID);
    //Response.Write(txtGender.SelectedItem.Text + " " + txtBio.Text);
    Response.Redirect("Photostream.aspx");
}

P.s: I tried using Response.Write to see the input for gender but it's always the first item of the list to be selected. I also have no input for txtBio even though everything seems alright.

You should name your DropDownList `ddlGender` or just `gender`. `txtGender` is confusing. — Ray Cheng, Jun 07 '12 at 04:39
Please post the method which you use to get the value of the static `DropDownList`. — Ray Cheng, Jun 07 '12 at 04:43
I edited the question with the method that uses `DropDownList`. You can check it now. — huong, Jun 07 '12 at 06:23
Do you do anything else with the DropDownList on the server? Could you be possibly changing its value? — Josh Mein, Jun 07 '12 at 12:10

Josh Mein · Answer 1 · 2012-06-07T03:16:54.817

If you are not rebinding the options for the drop down and you are not resetting its actual value on post back, you should not have to do anything with IsPostBack. You should just be able to do the following to get the value and text:

string value = txtGender.SelectedValue;
string text = txtGender.SelectedItem.Text;

Note: the actual value of a control will not be available during Page_Init since the page has not been completely initialized yet.

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Feb 19 '14 at 17:44

You need to assign unique values to the ListItems in your DropDownList:

<asp:DropDownList ID="txtGender" runat="server">
      <asp:ListItem Value="0">Male</asp:ListItem>

      <asp:ListItem Value="1">Female</asp:ListItem>

      <asp:ListItem Value="2">Other</asp:ListItem>

      <asp:ListItem Value="3">Rather not say</asp:ListItem>
</asp:DropDownList>

Try this and see if it helps.

score -1 · Answer 3 · answered Jun 07 '12 at 04:14

-1

Bind the dropdown on page load and check the IsPostBack property

protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
   if (!IsPostBack)
    {
        // Dropdown binding code goes here....   
    }
 }

answered Jun 07 '12 at 04:14

Jagz W

855
3
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Yeah I know that, but since I'm using static list, I'm not sure how to bind it (sorry if I sound dumb). Can you please show an example? – huong Jun 07 '12 at 04:19
@pinkcupcake Binding a dropdownlist is the process of adding the options to it. In your scenario the options are statically declared so you do not need to worry about binding it or the use of IsPostBack. – Josh Mein Jun 07 '12 at 11:22

ASP.NET and C# - Get selected item in static DropDownList

3 Answers3